Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1887-04-08
A SPEECH BY POWDERLY.
HE HAS A WORD 70 SAY 70 KEY
STONE SOlONS

Regarding the Passage of Laws for La
boring People-How the Knights Pro-
pose to SQUARE Things with Derelict
Legislators Word About Anarchy
and Another About whisky.
PITTsBURG, April S.--The Times special
from Harrisburg says, The Knights Of la
Dor convention organized Thursday afternoon
ny electing General Treasurer Turner chair
man, and e. w Painte-, Of Columbia, sec
rotary. The pueport of tie gathering is
best explained in two speeches which Grand
Master Pewderly made--one before the con-
vention and another in the evening IN the
hall of the house of representatives. There
were about LOO delegates, comprising fine
body of men. After organization there was
a secret session IN which seven committees
were appointed, to which will be referred
the various bills to be considered by the con-
vention. The names of the men who COM
pose these committees it was decided to keep
secret Tor reasons best known to Mr. Pow
derby, but there was no objection to making
public the purpose for which the committees
were named They will examine bills re-
lating to the btumnous aud anthracite coal
mines and mining iron industries, slate min
ing and quarrying, agriculture and lumber,
oil and oil production and miscellaneous
subjects
Attic convention did besides routine work
was to administer the oath of secrecy to
Official Stenographer James F. Burke of
Pittsburg, and to listen to Mr.. Powderly.
His speech before the convention and his
speech in the evening were identical About
so men and women greeted him with hearty
applause when he entered the house. Rep
resentative Gallery introduced him, where
upon Mr. Powderly said
1t is with feeling of pride that | address
a meeting gathered in the house of repre-
sentatives of my native state on the question
of labor, not only as it relates to working
men, but in broader sense, as it relates to
all. | feel it my duty, therefore, to speak
in regard to the convention here. | called it
to bring our organization together through
their representatives, TO meet with the chosen
representatives of the people, regardless of
party, to confer with them on measures to
benefit our state. We are charged
with being lobbyists--a labor lobby.
Mr. Powderly here referred to an editorial
IN a Philadelphia paper which makes that
charged Lobbyists were here before us ard
will be here when we are gone, but We are
IlOt mere as lpDDNiSbS. w g came mere 10 say
TO the representatives of the commonwealth:
Such and such a measure is good; Others are
| not
Before every election candidates ask the
working people to vote for them Thev say
| do so aud so and we will render an eQniva
| lent, Having made this promise, we certainly
| have a right to come and see if that promise
| has been fulfilled | have frequently been
| asked if such and such a bill is a good meas
Ao 4 Bt.AI oh tIo \ IL
| generally sent them to the secretary Of the
assembly in the locality where the inquiry
came from. In one instance | received the
| reply that such a bill had never been seen
| there. The title had been cut off the original
| one sent to Harrisburg and another substi-
| tuted
| We made up our minds that as we repre-
sent good portion Of the commonwealth
we had right to see if pledges made had
been fulfilled There is nothing in this that
Is wrong-nothing of the lobbyist We have
no brihe-no inducemeHt to offer We give
you our own reasons whv we ask Won tc
| vote for this or that measure, and leave the
rest to yourself. When you come home and
| We find that You voted the wrong way, We
| have the right to vote for the other fellow
| Laughter and applause. That's the Amer.
lean idea. More laughter and applause
! We are charged with being Anarchists
and fayoring measures that tend to Anarchy
| As chief of the organization ] can say that
nothing of Anarchy finds an abiding place ir
our midst, hut monopolists want to make
| people believe the contrary. No matter
what errors we have committed in the past
we have always aimed at doing right We
have pursued line of policy and found ont
| things that are right and wrong, but we al
ways kept clear of one thing thBt bring,
| odium on our country-Ausrchv.
In his afternoon speech Mr.. Powderly re
joiced in the defeat of the Anarchists can
didate in Chicago. The applause that greetet
this assertion was deafening. 1t found ar
echo in every heart Mr. Powderly CLOSED
by congratulating the delegation that no
one of them touched tasted or handled 'tha
which degrades the soul aul damns th'
body-liquor"